The Dark One's pet (PART 1)
by zoevdv
Summary: Did you know the Dark One had an apprentice? Her name is Melody and she has been with him ever since he fired/murdered his previous housekeeper. This is PART 1 of her story. It takes place in the Enchanted Forest before Regina's casts the Curse. I tried to stay true to the source material. I mean no disrespect and all credit goes to the writers (whose lines I sometimes used).
1. Chapter 1

The forest seems to breathe out in horror. Leaves twitch on their branches trying to escape the scene. In a clearing in the forest, the powerful sorcerer stands above the mutilated corpse of a poor farm girl. Rumpelstiltskin wipes the blood from his dagger. He had to kill the girl, he had no choice. She was a liability to him. She was deaf and mute, but lately he had his suspicions about her. He saw her look at the dagger on the rare occasion it was out in the open.

The way he deals with these things is to simply get rid of the problem. In this case, of her. He looks down on the corpse and sneers evilly. He then waves in the air and she disappears in a cloud of purple smoke. All that's left is a mushroom patch. Smiling to himself he makes the blood spatter on his leather vest disappear and he heads for home. Baelfire will be waiting for him.

Lost in thought he doesn't notice the two eyes looking at him from underneath a bush.

-

Rumpelstiltskin runs after his son but soon gives up the chase. That didn't go according to plan at all. How could he be that stupid! Forgetting to clean his boots, such a basic mistake. He looks at himself in the mirror, he's disgusted with the man looking back at him. The scaly skin isn't human anymore, he doesn't recognize the man looking back. He wants to find the man inside him again, but its no use. The monster just keeps staring back. The monster with the golden eyes.

Sighing he drops his gaze. He turns to his desk, hoping to continue to study the peculiar magic item he stole from the king's private study. Anything to forget the way Bae looked at him.

 _Knock knock knock._

Distracted he looks up from his bureau. Nobody ever knocks on his door. He doesn't receive social calls, so what is this. Slowly he pulls his chair from underneath him and walks towards the door. He takes a moment to arrange his features to look positively terrifying and opens the door.

It's just an ordinary girl. She scared and she's trembling slightly. She doesn't run away. No, she just stands her ground.

 _"What are you doing on the property of the Dark One dearie?"_ he asks her as he steps forward. She quickly steps backwards, anything to stay out of his way.

 _"I..., I wa..., I want to work for you Dark One."_ she manages to say, her voice trembling.

Rumpelstiltskin stops his threatening stare for a second. He pauses and looks at her, hunched slightly in fear but still looking at him. He does admire her guts to come to him like this. Most people would have run away by now. He decides to mess with her mind a little.

He laughs out loud and says _"I don't need any help dearie, certainly not from people like you."_

He observes her closely. She bites her lip and seems to gather her courage. _"I think you may need a new housekeeper."_

Rumpelstiltskin freezes for a second. A thousand thoughts fly through his head at the same time, but one seems to be the loudest. She knew. She saw. She is dead. A cold wave goes through his heart. Faster than the human eye can follow he stretches his arm and grabs the girl by the throat. Before she knows what is happening, he pulls her so close to him that their noses are nearly touching.

He sends waves of cold energy through her throat. The first ice crystals are already forming beneath his fingers. _"You have 5 seconds to explain yourself before I turn you an ice sculpture."_ he grumbles threateningly.

She squeals in his grip but the cold saps at her strength. "I can sh... show y...ou." she manages to whisper as her eyelids slowly drop down. Rumpelstiltskin opens his hand and lets her fall down at his feet. He glares at the girl on the ground and puts up 5 fingers. Slowly he counts down. Four fingers. Three fingers.

Suddenly the girl disappears. In the blink of an eye she shrinks down from a scared girl lying on the ground to a furry rabbit shaking visibly. The rabbit looks up with big frightened eyes but doesn't run away. It just sits there, looking up at Rumpelstiltskin. He bends down, grabs the rabbit by the scruff of the neck and holds it up in front of his face.

 _"Change back."_ he orders.

The rabbit blinks and expands into a human girl once again. Rumpelstiltskin is now holding the girl by her hair. He lets go.

 _"That's quite the talent you have."_ he says.

She's still not convinced he won't kill her immediately, but she breathes slightly slower now. She also doesn't clutch her skirt so frantically anymore.

 _"I saw you and your, euh, former housekeeper."_ she starts. _"I would like to offer my services."_

Rumpelstiltskin laughs out loud. _"And tell me why I shouldn't kill you right now?"_

 _"I can be very useful to you."_ the girl begins. _"I can turn into any animal I kill myself. Imagine having your very own dragon, sir."_

That thought gave Rumple some pause. _"You're saying you can turn into a dragon?"_

 _"Not yet, sir, not yet."_ she explains hastily _"But I'll get there one day, you'll see."_

Rumple stares at her for a long time. _"Why do you want to be my housekeeper anyway?Particularly because you've seen what happened to my last one."_ he adds threateningly.

She swallows quickly and takes a breath. She's gathering up her courage, he can see it. _"I want to learn magic from you sir. You're the most powerful wizard around."_

Rumple lets the magic come out from his inner well and hits her straight in the chest with it. A force moves from him, unseen by the eye but very real nonetheless. It pushes the girl backwards and she falls to the ground. He pins her down so none of her limbs can move.

 _"Flattery will get you nowhere dearie."_ he sneers.

She shudders in fear. _"Killing me won't get you anywhere either. I can be bound and I can show you how."_

Confused, Rumple lets his magic go. The girl on the ground catches her breath.

 _"Bound, you say."_

She looks up at him. _"Yes sir."_

 _"Like a dog."_

She winces when he says that. Somebody must have called her a dog once. Rumple files that thought away for further use.

 _"Like a dog, sir."_

He thinks on it for a moment, but decides to take a leap of faith. He's sure he can kill her if it becomes necessary and he does need a housekeeper. Someone to look after Bae when he's gone. And if that happens to be a shapeshifter, that's only a plus.

 _"Show me the binding."_ he orders her sharply.

The girl scrambles to her feet. _"A long time ago I got cursed by a faerie. It wasn't meant to be a curse, but she messed it up and it didn't turn out as planned."_ the girl explains.

Rumple doesn't need a history lesson and nearly interrupts her. She stops him quickly, and holds up both hands. _"It's relevant, I promise!"_

Feeling more annoyed by the second, Rumple motions for her to continue. _"She was supposed to make it so that nobody could steal my heart ever again."_ Here the girl blushes as she stares at her feet. _"I had some trouble with a boy, and... doesn't matter. The point is that now, my heart is protected. I'm the only one who can take it out. She messed up the literal and figurative phrasing of the wish and now I'm cursed."_

 _"What are you talking about?" asks Rumple. "Take the heart out, what sort of nonsense is that!"_

 _"Like this."_ the girl replies. She reaches in her chest. Her fingers seem to hit a barrier for a second but then go right through her clothes. She doesn't look at all comfortable with her hand buried in her chest. Then she frowns deeply and pulls out her hand.

Rumple looks flabbergasted. He didn't think magic could do this. She holds out her heart in her hand and yet she's still alive. It's her heart, her still beating heart! It looks like it's coated in a dark red resin and it's glowing slightly. He looks at it attentively. He raises his eyes and looks the girl in the eye again. She stands there, looking slightly scared. She holds her heart in her hand as if she's giving it to him.

Rumple takes the heart in his hand. As he does this, he can see her flinch slightly. _"Did you feel that?"_ he asks her. He can feel the power in the heart pulsating beneath his fingers.

 _"Yes sir."_ she says. _"You can use magic to pull out someone's heart. But because of that damn faerie, nobody can use magic to pull out mine."_

Rumple looks at her again. _"I'd say that's a good thing, won't you agree?"_ and he lightly squeezes the heart. The effect it has on the girl is immediate. She groans and falls to the ground.

 _"Please don't sir. Please."_ she whispers.

Rumple smiles and reduces the pressure. _"So squeezing a heart hurts. Fascinating."_

The girl looks up at him and says _"Whisper something at the heart sir."_

 _"What?"_ says Rumple.

 _"Order it to do something."_ she explains.

Rumpelstiltskin thinks for a moment and says _"Run headfirst into that tree over there."_

The heart glows up slightly and the girl immediately runs at a tree. To see if it isn't a trick of some sort, Rumple lets her go on. She smashes head first into the bark of the tree and falls down unconscious. He sniggers to himself. So it isn't a trick. She really just gave him a way to control her. This could work out very nicely for him. He walks next to the fallen girl and weaves some magic above her head. She opens her eyes, looking very confused.

 _"What's your name, girl."_ Rumple asks.

 _"Melody... sir."_ she says.

He smiles at her and says _"You're hired, Melody. And I'll keep this."_ he says, looking at the heart in his hand. _"We'll get along just fine."_


	2. Chapter 2

The Dark Castle looms ominously over the surrounding landscape. It's an evil place and it feels like all of the animals fear it. No bird will make a nest here, no bunny will be seen nibbling on the flowers and there are no fish swimming in the pond. It's the home of a powerful wizard and his pet, so the creatures of the forest tend to avoid it.

Rumpelstiltskin walks through the empty hallways. There has been something on his mind lately. Something that's eating away at him. He stops near at a window and looks down on the courtyard. He can see the girl preparing some ingredients for a spell he'll cast later. It's menial work and the ingredients stink a lot. She sits down on a crooked little stool with her head as far away from the a purple cloud of smog as she can. She has to administer precisely 100 wings of dead flies to the potion or it won't work. So it's very delicate and very awful work. She did it immediately when he asked. She always does everything he asks, no matter how horrible it is.

Lately he has started to wonder. Would she still be this loyal to him if he didn't have her heart locked away? He decides it's time for a test.

-

He holds the box behind his back as he approaches the girl. She's now moved on to stirring the brew with a massive spoon.

 _"45. 46. 47..."_ she mutters, as she slowly moves the spoon round and round.

Rumple waves his hand in a circle and motions at the massive spoon. He releases a little magic from the tip of his finger and smiles when the spoon suddenly starts to stir the potion on his own.

The girl looses her grip and is obviously startled, but she looks around until she spots her master standing behind her. She bows slightly. _"Yes master?"_

He shows her the box in his hands. As she looks at it, he can tell she realizes what it is. Instead of happiness he sees panic flood across her face.

She looks up at him. _"Please don't send me away master, I'll do anything!"_ she pleads, sinking to her knees. _"I'm sorry if I screwed up something or what I did to displease you, but please don't send me away."_

Rumple pulls her up and shoves her heart in with his other hand. Her face fills with relief and happiness for a moment, feeling as complete as once before. Then the fear kicks in again. Before she can start pleading again, Rumple shuts her up.

 _"Silence!"_ he orders. _"I need you to go and get me more straw. I want it here 5 minutes ago."_ he shouts in her face. _"Go and get my straw!"_ he yells as he pushes her down on the ground.

She lays there confused for a second but not for long. She starts changing, shrinking into the shape of a hawk. Rumple watches the bird fly up and away and wonders wether or not she'll be back.

He sighs and turns to the potion he had her working on. It looks exactly like it should. She seems to have a talent for potion making. She can't preform magic like he can at all, but she's incredibly useful to have around. Her repertoire of animals has grown extensively, and she can now fly, swim and climb like her furry counterparts. She still hasn't mastered the form of a dragon yet, but lately he has been looking around for a suitable young dragon for her to kill. The thought of having a servant who can change into a dragon positively thrills him. Magic has a way of not working around dragons. He likes that.

He goes back inside. He sits at his table for a while, content to read a book. Suddenly he feels something enter the grounds. He has wards everywhere on his grounds, so he always feels intruders approaching. He disappears into a cloud of purple smoke and reappears on the highest tower. Here he can see his entire dominion. He looks down and sees a small figure approaching the main door. The figure carries two bushels of straw. He smiles to himself and disappears again.

-

Months after his little test, Rumpelstiltskin leads the was through the castle. All of Regina's guards cower in fear when they see The Dark One and his pet walk through the corridors.

 _"This is a good idea master."_ Melody tells him as she hurries to keep up.

Rumple isn't yet convinced but he knows he needs Regina to focus on her training. He let Melody talk him into giving Regina another chance after a disastrous training session earlier that day.

 _"Silence."_ he snaps at Melody. _"You'll come inside with me. Maybe Regina will listen to you, she seems to like you for some reason."_

They approach the door of Regina's chambers. It's clear somebody is using magic inside. The very same magic Regina failed to grasp earlier that day.

The Dark One smiles at Melody. _"Well, it looks like I won't be needing your persuasive skills after all."_

He steps into the room with Melody not far behind. _"Well, this is a day of surprises."_ Rumpelstiltskin says. _"I thought it would take you at least until..."_

He looks up and stops talking immediately. The woman standing in Regina's private chambers isn't Regina at all. She has curly red hair and wears ordinary clothes.

 _"You're not Regina."_ he continues. Melody walks inside with him. She takes one look at the stranger and starts growling. Rumple motions her to calm down. Not yet, the hand seems to say.

The lady in green replies _"No. I'm Cora's other daughter."_

That's enough to shut up both the Dark One and Melody. Cora having two daughters, that's impossible. Melody looks confused as Rumpelstiltskin slowly approaches the woman.

 _"That's not possible."_ he says slowly.

The woman replies quickly. _"I'm Zelena."_ she says, saving her bomb shell for last. _"Her first-born."_ As she says that, her face lights up. She looks far to proud than she has any right to be.

Rumpelstiltskin doesn't trust it and comes even closer. _"We'll see about that."_ he says as he yanks away one of Zelena's hairs. He motions behind him and Melody immediately hands him a small flask. It has a potion in it and as soon as he adds the hair it becomes bright green. Rumpelstiltskin looks up amazed with the result.

 _"Oh, hello, dearie."_ he says softly. _"A day of surprises indeed."_

-

They take Zelena home with them. Rumpelstiltskin plans to teach her the same magic as Regina. They appear in the middle of the Dark Castle.

 _"Melody will take you to your room. Dinner is in two hours."_ he says, walking briskly away.

Zelena and Melody just stand there, feeling a little awkward around each other. Melody decides to break the ice. _"Well, I'm Melody."_ she says, holding out her hand.

Zelena looks at her with a scowl on her face like she isn't yet sure what to do, shake the hand or just turn around. Slowly she accepts the hand and shakes it briefly. _"I'm Zelena."_ she responds.

It's a slightly more frosty response than she had hoped for, so Melody quickly shrugs off the awkward moment. _"I'll take you to your room."_

She leads the way inside. She tries to make conversation but Zelena's frosty demeanor aren't very helpful. So after a while Melody gives up and just leads the way in silence. After a while she stops at a room.

 _"This will be your room as you stay with us."_ She motions to a door a few doors to the left. _"That's my room. Feel free to knock when you need someone to talk to."_

Zelena simply turns around and closes the door in Melody's face. "Wow." Melody says to herself. _"No people skills, that woman."_

She turns around and heads to the kitchen to start dinner.

-

A few days later Melody walks in on Zelena practicing a difficult spell in the library. Her concentration shattered, Zelena drops the items she was balancing so meticulously. Before Melody can apologize, Zelena slams her to the nearest wall with a push of magical force

 _"Look what you did! All I ask is that you stay out of my way,"_ she says, nearly screaming at the top of her lungs, _"and yet you can't even manage that."_

Zelena stands in front of Melody who picks herself off the ground. Melody doesn't look like somebody who has a temper, but she sure does. And right now she can feel her anger boiling over. When she gets angry, she starts to growl. It's like the wolf inside of her wants to come out and deal with the problem that's making her angry. Or the bear. Or the panther. Or any one of the predators she can turn into. Melody looks at Zelena. If looks could kill, Zelena would be a smoldering pile of ash right now. Growling, she tries to push down the anger from her belly to her toes, where it can't do so much damage. Unfortunately Zelena misinterprets the growling.

 _"Do you want a fight munchkin? Because you can have one!"_ she screams in Melody's face and releases her magic. Melody was expecting this and a second before the blast hits she shrinks rapidly. Zelena stands there, looking around furiously.

 _"Where are you! Come out and fight damnit!"_ she screams at a seemingly empty room.

Suddenly Rumpelstiltskin enters the room. _"What is this noise!"_ he bellows. Zelena immediately puts on her most charming smile.

 _"I'm sorry. Your servant has an attitude problem. I was teaching her a lesson."_ she says sweetly.

 _"It's her who has the attitude problem master."_ Melody says from behind Zelena's back. Zelena immediately spins around and her smile turns into a scowl when she sees Melody standing there.

 _"I came inside to clean the room and she went berserk on me."_ Melody explains, staring angrily at Zelena.

 _"That's a lie you horrible... She's lying Rumple!"_ Zelena protests, turning back to face Rumpelstiltskin.

He takes a moment to look at the two women glowering at each other. Then, he smiles.

 _"Zelena, I want you to apologize to Melody."_

Zelena looks at him, her mouth hanging open. _"Me? Apologize to her?"_

The Dark One approaches his student. _"Yes Zelena. That girl has been with me for over a century. You'll not lay a finger on her, you understand?"_ he concludes threateningly.

 _"But, but... She's a liar!"_ Zelena stammers.

Rumpelstiltskin shakes his head. _"She doesn't lie to me. So, I'm waiting Zelena."_ he says, crossing his arms.

Zelena looks at Melody in disgust but she doesn't see a way out of this situation. She pulls a face like she has a turd underneath her nose and says _"I'm sorry."_

Melody makes sure to keep her face in a neutral expression even though she just wants to smile and gloat. _"That's alright Zelena."_ she says. _"I'm sorry for disturbing you earlier."_

Zelena doesn't seem very grateful and she simply storms out of the room. Melody walks up to Rumpelstiltskin.

 _"I'm sorry to ask sir, but do you know what's wrong with her?"_

Rumpelstiltskin looks down on his apprentice and sees she really is just asking a question. There's no malicious intent in her choice of words.

 _"I think she's jealous of you."_

Melody looks at him, not understanding that statement at all. _"Sorry master?"_

Rumpelstiltskin sighs and explains. _"She's jealous at how long you've been with me, I think. Every time I go away and teach Regina, I can tell she's hurting inside."_

Melody nods in understanding. Then she looks back up, feeling slightly worried.

 _"But, the curse, sir?"_ she asks.

Her master looks down and sighs once more. _"I know. I know."_

Right outside the doors, unnoticed by both of them, stands Zelena hunched over in the corner. She heard the entire conversation. Now there's genuine hatred on her face. Hatred directed at Melody.

-

A few nights after that, the Dark One comes home in a foul mood. Melody can hear him break things downstairs. When he's in such a mood, it's best to stay out of his way. It wouldn't be the first time he takes some of that anger out on her.

Melody decides to head for the kitchen. At least over there she can keep busy. Quickly she changes into the shape of a mouse and scurries downstairs. Down the wooden beams that keep the castle up she goes. She arrives in the kitchen in no time and changes back into her human form. She washes her hands and starts cooking.

It's not long before she has prepared something delicious involving mushrooms and veal. She puts the two plates on a tray and heads back upstairs, making sure the bottle of wine doesn't spill. She starts setting the dinner table. The nice knives, the nice crystal glasses and the napkins neatly folded. Just the way he likes it. Suddenly the doors open behind her.

 _"What is it tonight?"_ he asks her as he approaches the table.

 _"Veal and mushrooms sir."_ she says. She looks up, eyes darting around the room. Melody doesn't see Zelena anywhere and she usually follows Rumple like a shadow. Melody prepared dinner for her as well, just like she always does. Zelena is never late, she really enjoys these evening chats with Rumpelstiltskin.

Rumpelstiltskin sighs and says _"She's gone. I was correct, she wasn't the right person to cast the spell."_

Melody looks at her master. She wonders why he seems so upset about that. He sill has Regina, so what's his problem?

Rumpelstiltskin motions to the empty chair. _"Why don't you sit down and eat that."_ he says.


	3. Chapter 3

The day Belle arrives in the Dark Castle isn't any different from the other days. Suddenly The Dark One simply turns up at the door with a lovely lady in tow. A lady all dressed in yellow.

Melody is sweeping the courtyard when they arrive. She looks up slightly startled and stops sweeping. Her master ignores her as usual and takes the lady inside. She looks back at her with a sad smile. Melody feels just a little stab of uncertainty. Looking at the beauty of the new girl she decides she can't even hope to compare to that. Feeling slightly sad, she continues her sweeping.

-

A little later Rumpelstiltskin enters the courtyard. _"You can stop that now, pet."_

Melody looks up and stops sweeping. _"Why is that master?"_ she asks.

Rumpelstiltskin chuckles and twirls his fingers. _"You know who that lady was?"_

 _"No sir."_ Melody responds, shaking her head.

Another chuckle from Rumpelstiltskin. _"That's King Maurice's daughter. She will be living with us in exchange for my help in the Ogre Wars."_

Melody smiles and breathes a sigh of relief. Her master had been talking about the Ogre Wars for a while. He tried to come up with a good payment, but never quite found something that was worth his trouble. Melody understands now. A princess is quite a payment.

She nods her head slightly in a sign of respect. _"That's quite clever sir. But if you don't mind me asking, what will she be doing here?"_

 _"Well, clean the castle, cook and things like that. If we want to proceed with your training, my little apprentice, you can't keep doing all that now can you?"_

Melody smiles broadly and jumps up to hug Rumpelstiltskin with the force of a small brown bear. She releases him before he has time to complain or process what just happened to him. He just stands there looking confused.

 _"Yeah, well, tomorrow I'll tell her about her duties."_ Rumpelstiltskin tells Melody. _"Tonight I'll just let her sleep in the dungeon. Why don't you go to her right now and keep an eye on her for tonight?"_

 _"Will do sir."_ Melody answers. She salutes and runs towards the doors. Rumpelstiltskin looks at her, a smile creeping on his lips. He can't seem to push it away, it seems content to stay there in the corner of his mouth.

-

Melody walks down the stairs leading to the dungeons. The lower she gets, the chillier it becomes. Not yet freezing but definitely chilly. She wants to go inside, but something stops her. She listens intently and realizes she can hear somebody cry. Stealing herself, she enters the dungeons. She walks through the narrow corridor, passing several closed doors. She stops before one of the wooden doors, not quite knowing what to do now. She can see Belle lying there, face pressed in the crook of her arms and crying her heart out. Melody sure feels sorry for the girl.

She takes the key from the hook and turns the key in the lock. Suddenly the crying inside stops. Bracing herself, Melody steps into the cell.

A very teary eyed woman looks her in the eye. _"Hello."_ she says. She's got a lovely twang in her voice and doesn't look nearly as distraught as Melody expected. _"I saw you earlier sweeping the courtyard, right?"_

Melody nods lowly. _"That was me."_

The woman wipes away her tears and smiles sadly. _"I'm Belle. What's your name?"_

Surprised, Melody takes a step forward. A princess who cares about somebody else, that's a first for her. _"I'm Melody. I'm sort of the Dark One's apprentice."_ she explains.

Now the princess looks confused. _"Apprentice? Aren't you a prisoner like me?"_

Melody shakes her head. _"No ma'am. Never have been. I'm here because I want to be."_ she explains.

This seems strange to the princess. _"I didn't think anyone would ever want to be here."_ she says, looking around in her small cell.

 _"Now why don't I get you some blankets and things like that."_ Melody proposes. _"You should just stay here for now, until the master gives you a room. I'll be back in a second."_

She walks out of the room. She nearly locks it but decides against it. She turns around to face Belle again.

 _"Look. I'll leave it unlocked. You're not a prisoner darling. But that deal you made, if you run away it'll be void."_ Melody explains. _"And I know my master. He'll be extremely angry. So I'll leave this open. I'll be back in just a second. And it truly is in your best interest for you to still be here when I get back."_

Melody turns around and goes out of the dungeons. She quickly walks up the stairs, passing portraits and landscapes on the walls. She finds some blankets and a pillow in a trunk and turns back. She truly hopes that Belle listens to her. She didn't mean to threaten her or even scare her. She just wanted her to understand that a deal with the Dark One, that's for ever. You can't get out of a deal like that.

Down the stairs she goes, clutching the blankets and the pillow to her chest. She walks in the cell and finds Belle sitting on the edge of the bed. Melody smiles at her. Belle smiles back.

The next day Melody takes Belle on a trip around the castle. She shows her where the buckets are. She tells her what Rumpelstiltskin likes for breakfast. And as the week passes, they become close friends. It takes Belle a while to truly understand that Melody is here by her own choice.

-

Melody is working on a powder in the potion room. Lately, she has been allowed to work here by herself. Melody grinds her ingredients to a shiny powder. She smiles to herself when the dust around her starts to glisten as the sunbeams shine though the window. She grinds the stones together until she's satisfied with the thinness of the powder. She looks closely at it and sweeps it in a small orange bag. That's now a part of her growing collection of magical dust. She prefers to work with dust rather than potions. It's pretty when you blow it in the air and much more easy to control.

Nowadays, she walks around with several little bags on her belt. She doesn't look dangerous but she has at least three ways to take anyone down in those leather bags. She holds up the little bag, admiring her handiwork. Suddenly she hears a very loud scream. It's Rumpelstiltskin and it comes from outside. Quickly Melody runs to the window. She just sees him drag Belle out of the castle by her arm. They are arguing and Melody sees Rumpelstiltskin is losing his patience. He grabs her by the arm and disappears in a cloud of purple smoke. Melody looks out the window, trying to see anything. A few seconds later the cloud is back. Rumpelstiltskin steps out of it. He's on his own. A cold feeling fills Melody from top to bottom. She knew about Rumpelstiltskin's plan to send Belle away for straw. She heard him ask her earlier that same day. She knows that trick. He did the same thing to her years ago.

Something must have gone wrong.

Melody swallows away her worries. Then she starts cleaning up the workbench. It's always a little messy when you're dealing with dust. She's very tidy, so there's not much dust to deal with.

When she brushes away the last remnants, Melody hears footsteps on the stairs. She's surprised he doesn't stomp through the floorboards, that's how loud he's being right now. The door flies open. Melody can feel the magical force that blew it open from where she is sitting right now. The electrical charge makes the hair on her forearms stand up.

 _"Sir?"_ Melody asks tentatively.

 _"Get out."_ Rumpelstiltskin orders.

Melody quickly gathers her things in her arms and hurries out of the door. The Dark One slams the door close behind her. She looks at the closed door, feeling like she has just lost something.

She quickly runs down to her room, putting away her powders and stones. She looks to the clock on the mantlepiece. It's nearly dinnertime. With a sinking feeling she walks downstairs. Melody is sure she isn't going to find Belle there, but she has to try. A tiny slither of hope creeps in her heart, even though she knows it's no use. The kitchen greets her with silence as she walks in. Nobody is chopping vegetables, nobody is singing a silly song and there's no laughter filling the pots and pans.

Melody sighs. She then heads for the cupboard where they keep the meat. Time to cook dinner.

-

A while later she walks up to Rumpelstiltskin's room. Usually she doesn't set a foot inside that room. It's off limits to her. Maybe today is different somehow. She transfers the tray to her hip and knocks firmly.

She stands there tapping her foot and waiting for him to come out. The smell of chicken and gravy was driving her stomach crazy. Cooking always makes her hungry. She takes a deep breath when the door opens. Rumpelstiltskin blocks the opening but doesn't look like he wants to kill her. He just looks sad.

 _"What?"_ he asks. Melody can hear the hurt in his voice and tries to ignore it.

She holds up the tray of food and holds it out to him so that he has to take it. _"I made chicken."_ she answers. _"Enjoy sir."_

She turns around and walks away. The best she can do for her master is to just ignore what just happened. To carry on like nothing has changed.


	4. Chapter 4

Rumpelstiltskin is behind bars. Nobody thought it would be possible to get him there but because of a little plot involving Cinderella he's now in jail. His cell is just a hole in the ground. The bars of his cage look like long and pointy teeth, ready to chow down on anyone escaping. It's nighttime and all is quiet.

 _"It's just us dearie."_ Rumple whispers. _"You can show yourself!"_

Suddenly black smoke emerges from a small rat on the floor and there stands Regina, Queen of the Enchanted Forest. She sure looks like a Queen, her fashion sense has never been her worst asset.

-

Regina turns away from her old mentor, looking deep in thought.

 _"Well thank you for assisting me Rumple."_ she says with a sneer. _"It's so unfortunate to see you here, abandoned by everyone you hold dear."_

Then she turns around again to face him. _"Oh, that's right. There is nobody you hold dear."_ she sneers _"You're all alone, as usual. That's why you need me for this stupid curse anyway. Even Melody left you in the end."_

Rumple smiles at her and giggles softly. _"Oh but you're wrong my dear Queen."_ he says. _"I'm never alone."_

Suddenly something big pushes Regina to the ground. She can feel massive paws on her back and hot breath on the back of her neck. Teeth nip at her ear as she's still in shock from the sudden attack and can't seem to move a muscle. Then the monster on her back steps away. Still lying on the floor, Regina tries to keep her dignity intact by sneering at the massive wolf now sitting quietly in the corner of the cave. The wolf's limbs start to change and morph back into the form of a girl sitting peacefully on the floor.

Melody looks at Regina and smiles a sweet smile. She makes sure to show a lot of pointy teeth with that smile. Regina stands up and brushes the dirt from her dress. _"I can see you still keep your pet around."_ she says, making a point to not look at the girl.

The Dark One smiles at her. _"She never left me, Regina. Good luck with that curse now."_ Then he starts laughing maniacally. Regina will never admit it, but that's the moment she loses her nerve. She disappears in a cloud of smoke, leaving the dungeon behind.


End file.
